Last year's NHL season was a learning experience for everyone — players, coaches, refs, fans. As we get ready to open the gates on post-lockout season No. 2, it's time to take a look at the lessons of last season — and how they can apply to this season!
Lesson 1: Anyone Can Win the Stanley Cup
It's been said before and it's worth repeating again: with parity, speed, and a salary cap, anyone can make a worst-to-first transition. Does that mean that Chicago or Pittsburgh are ready to leap to the forefront of the NHL? Let's look at the components that made up the Hurricanes' championship team:
- Defense by committee: No one stood out, for better or worse on the bluelines. No superstars, but no bums, either, means that you get 60 solid minutes.
- Solid goaltending: You couldn't win without good goaltending before and you can't now.
- A rising star: Eric Staal blossomed in his second NHL season, giving the Hurricanes a true No. 1 center.
- Speed and transition: Turn the puck over, skate your tail off. Forechecking's not about skill, it's about speed and work ethic.
- Career seasons: Hello, Matt Cullen, Justin Williams, Erik Cole, etc.
- An inspirational leader: No one doubted Rod Brind'amour on or off the ice.
The Canes were a bunch of untested young talent and mediocre defense before last season, but now they're filled with mature young talent and a steady defense. This shows that if a team's young talent can put it together all at once, today's NHL offers very big rewards. That's why Pittsburgh may challenge as soon as next season. This season, however, it's a crapshoot to see whose farm team will come of age.
Lesson 2: Platoon Goaltending Works
Marty Biron and Ryan Miller. Marty Gerber and Cam Ward. With two good goaltenders, all a coach has to do is ride a hot hand and he's always got a safety net. It may not make for the happiest of goaltenders, but it can win a championship. So don't think that San Jose, Anaheim, or Buffalo are itching to make moves just yet.
Lesson 3: Monster Trades Can Happen in the Salary Cap Era
The salary cap was supposed to be the thing that made monster trades impossible. Try telling that to Joe Thornton. Teams with cap space are suddenly at an advantage when other cap-crunching teams fall into trouble and GMs get desperate. We may not see another MVP get moved this season, but don't be surprised if big names get shipped out of imploding teams.
Lesson 4: Rookies Can Make a Difference
Hello, Sidney Crosby. Hello, Alexander Ovechkin. Glad to have you back for year two. Now, let's see who's on the doorstep. Phil Kessel, Gilbert Brule, Wojtek Wolski, Matt Carle, and Alex Radulov are just a handful of rookies who can potentially make immediate impacts on their club. Oh yeah, and some guy named Evgeni Malkin will miss the first few weeks of the season — he's supposed to be pretty good.
Lesson 5: Chris Pronger is Awesome
Mr. Pronger was the best player in last year's playoffs, and there's no reason why that can't continue in Anaheim. Early indications show that Pronger will play on the power play with Ducks captain Scott Niedermayer and separately in other situations. That means one of them will be on the ice at all times at even strength, and the power play will have two of the deadliest blue line weapons of a generation. Advantage: Anaheim.
Lesson 6: Shootout Success Means Nothing in the Playoffs
Remember Dallas' amazing shootout record? That sure didn't help them out when it came to playoff hockey against Colorado. Shootout wins can inflate point totals and increase standings, but they're ultimately fairly meaningless when everything's on the line.
Lesson 7: Calling the Rules is a Good Thing
The competition committee — and everyone else in the world — deemed last season's set of rules an overwhelming success. That means this season will be more of the same. There are some small tweaks (see below), but by and large, expect the same hooking and holding calls we witnessed last season.
Lesson 8: Blade Curve Limitations? We Don't Need No Stinkin' Limitations
Hey, Ilya Kovalchuk and Jaromir Jagr, were you guys happy about the increase blade curve length? I'd have to think so, considering how often you guys got caught with illegal sticks last season. Alexander Ovechkin sure is happy — last year's Calder winner claims that he can fire the puck even harder now that he can put a more wicked curve on his stick. You wanted more scoring? You got more scoring.
Lesson 9: OLN is Where?
American hockey fans had a hard time finding games broadcast on OLN last season because, well, OLN was a pretty obscure channel that wasn't carried by every satellite/cable provider. Just like last year, OLN will be impossible to locate, except for a different reason. If you haven't heard, OLN is now called Versus, and Versus will have broadcast exclusivity for stretches of Mondays and Tuesdays. That means you better figure out where that darn channel is sooner rather than later, otherwise no hockey for you!
Lesson 10: Speed Kills, Skill Wins
Boy, if you haven't figured this out before, then you're in for a difficult year as GM or fantasy GM. The Flyers spent a combined $7 million last season on Mike Rathje and Derian Hatcher and both proved an ill fit for the smaller, quicker NHL. On the other hand, Brian Gionta went bonkers and scored over 40 goals, and a whole slew of Buffalo Sabres used their skating legs to get to the Conference Finals. The Calgary Flames had speed, but no skill, and even though they could keep up with everyone, they couldn't put the puck in the net to save their (playoff) lives. Speed and skill — put the two together and you've got the recipe for success.
The puck drops on October 4th. Learn your lessons now, and enjoy the season!
Leave a Comment